"Agreed. We must travel as far North as North goes, to the only place in this realm with snows." Xarame said, starting towards the back of the fortress, heading North into the mountains. Met meanwhile was still tending to Discord. She'd taken Frozen's advice and managed to pour most of the contents of the cup between his lips; she'd expected his body to reject the Windigo's lifeblood, but it almost seemed he was in some way familiar with it... At any rate, Frozen's gift made her job much more manageable, cutting the poison's production rate by half. She soon had the corruption pushed back to the edges of the wound, but she could go no further. It was clear this was having an effect, however, when Discord awoke with a start. "Aaahhhhh!" "Aaahhhh!" Cried the startled Met, breaking her concentration and briefly allowing the poison to flow once more. "Aaaarrrghhhh!" Screamed Discord, the poison flowing through him once more, liquid fire in his veins. "I'm sorry! I was not expecting you to wake!" Met exclaimed, focusing her magic on getting the poison under control once more.
The effects of worry for his friend was obviously weighing on Frozen, as he walked along in silence beside Xarame. He decided to occupy his thoughts with other questions, such as the notion that snow existed in this world. He couldn't even imagine..
They encountered no resistance as they left the fortress, and they were soon in the foothills of the mountains. Xarame had only been up here a handful of times before, to gather ingredients for Arzeroth. She had decided not to mention this; she certainly didn't choose to do it, and she was under guard the entire time, but there was a strong possibility that she had collected the ingredients for the poison they were now trying to fight. They were still low in the hills, but even here there was an obscuring mist and a chilling breeze. As Xarame picked a careful path, she gestured at the spectral torches appearing now and again. "Do not follow the lights; it is known they were laid by wrights..."
(tolkien reference? Lol) Frozen nodded gently and slipped a protective hoof around her, "I just don't understand..how did you end up here Xarame?"
Xarame stopped abruptly as she felt Frozen's hoof through the thick coat, staring straight ahead. After a moment, she collected herself enough to speak. "We have discussed this before... is it really a subject of which you want to hear more?" (Yep. I don't really have an imagination so much as a pool of pop culture knowledge. Just call me Toaster Tarantino XD)
(rofl, no worries) Frozen nodded, "Unless you are uncomfortable with telling me." He removed his hoof, remembering the abuse she had received, "Forgive me Xarame."
Xarame gave him a half smile and continued walking. "There is nothing to forgive; it is I that must relearn how to live." She sighed. "I have already told you the tale of my tribe, what else would you like me to describe? I will tell all that I am able, save the last chapter of my fable." She shuddered at the idea of describing... that.
"Well, healing is my family's trade; my skill's foundations my mother laid." Xarame said, slowly. "But a thousand years of this place and him, have made memories of such things turn dim." She turned to look at Frozen. "I have answered, now to keep it fair; what tales do you have to share?"
"My tale is long, but so is the journey," said Frozen, "I was born 150 years after the nightmare moon incident, in the Windigo capital of Snowdrift. My family consisted of my father, King Northern Light, my mother Queen scycle, and my sister Princess Aurora. Being the eldest, my father tried to mold me into the next ruler of the windigo empire, but I was atypical amongst my own kind. I took no joy or satisfaction from feeding upon negative emotions and would starve myself for extended periods of time to avoid doing so. My father eventually tired of dealing with me, and when I refused to take the throne he exiled me." Frozen stopped as they neared a small waterfall, feeding into a spring; a touch of beauty in the hellish wasteland. "From there I traveled across the world, leaving Equestria behind as I traveled to Chineigh. I spent many hundreds of years there, studying medicine and magic, looking for a way to make myself mortal. I traveled from Chineigh to many of the other kingdoms of the world, until I returned to Equestria and took up residence with Discord."
Xarame listened silently as they walked along, nodding occasionally. As they stopped at the waterfall, she noticed a small plant growing by the water's edge; not the one they needed, but useful none the less. She picked it and placed it carefully in her pack. "It is strange to know that all this unfurled whilst I was banished from the world," She said, somewhat sadly.
He took her hoof in his as a gesture of comfort, "Don't feel sorry for me, I would not have learned half of the things I know if I had remained in Snowdrift."
Xarame looked at his hoof; she knew it was meant as a kind gesture, and she appreciated it, but it still made her a little uncomfortable. It was nowhere near as unsettling as unexpected contact, but it still sparked a feeling of fear and helplessness within her. She cursed Arzeroth for making her feel this way; she liked Frozen, and didn't want to offend him, but she wasn't sure if she could ever return to her former self, or truly let her guard down. "Knowledge is important I agree, but one must also know one's true identity; without knowing what is truly home, you'll be cursed to forever roam." She said, as much to herself as to Frozen.
As if sensing her apprehension, Frozen lowered his hoof in understanding, "I suppose we have that in common. I do not know who I am or where my home is."
"Perhaps if we can escape this place's tether, then we will be able to find it together," Xarame suggested, with a hint of hopefulness. "But for now we have a more pressing concern; we must find this plant and make our return." With that, she continued on further up the mountainside. -------- "Met? Is that you?" Discord asked, the pain having receded enough for him to focus on his surroundings. "What happened?" "You were stabbed by Arzeroth; he used a poisoned blade." Met responded, managing to remain focused on her spell this time. Discord looked bewildered. "You can speak!? That must mean... we were successful! We killed him! We- wait, where's Frozen? Is he, is he ok?!" "Please! Calm down!" Met pleaded; his heart rate was increasing, pumping the poison faster. "He's fine; he and Xarame have gone to get the ingredients necessary to produce an antidote." She looked at him quizzically. "You don't remember what happened? Do you remember what you said to Frozen?" Discord calmed down upon hearing that Frozen was ok, but now had a new source for concern. "No... what did I say?"
The prospect of finding this, with Xarame filled him with hope, and a desire to dutifully protect this made. So he trudged on, following her into the mountains.
The snow was soon up to Xarame's tummy, and walking had become difficult, but at last she spotted what they'd come for; a solitary purple flower growing on a rise! As she trudged over to retrieve it, Xarame heard an ominous cracking. As she grabbed it, the ice she was standing on cracked and fell, sending her sliding towards the edge of the cliff... -------- "Son!?" Discord exclaimed. "I called him... Oh no, no no no. This is not good..." "Calm!" Met yelped in alarm, trying to stay ahead of the poison.
"I, um thanks..." Xarame stuttered, too shaken to even rhyme. She sat in the snow to attempt to calm herself. --------- "So, is it true?" Met asked the shell-shocked looking Discord. Discord looked at her, something fighting his instinct to lie. "I... He can't know. It would destroy him, I'm sure. Besides, he's done a fine job of growing up without me. No; it's for the best this remains our secret." He looked at her pleadingly. "You won't tell him, will you?"
(poor guy doesn't even know how wrong he is! Lol) Frozen sat with her in the snow, for a while, comforting her as best he could.
